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The first and second largest book publishers in the United States, Random House and Penguin will soon merge into one mega publishing house, and in doing so, begin to compete with Amazon.

Just a few years ago Amazon and Penguin got into a kerfuffle about e-book pricing. Now, however, Penguin Random House may have the last laugh after the European Commission approved the deal today, according to a Reuters report, shortly after the U.S. had done so. The two publishers announced their intent to combine forces back in October.

By increasing their footprint, Penguin Random House, and other publishing houses, will have increased leverage over ebook distributors like Amazon, Nook and Apple. In the past, Amazon had set most ebook prices at $9.99, which Penguin in particular deemed to be an undervaluation. Now that they carry more weight, they will be able to further dictate the value of bestsellers or even create their own ebook store to compete with Amazon, Nook and Apple directly.